<p>Hi,
I'm really interested in women's colleges b/c I haven't ever been to an all-female school. I go to a pretty bad public high school (super large!) & I feel more comfortable w/out boys. (They can be immature...or just plain weird).
My parents totally disagree w/me & think that girls get into fights all the time. They think that w/out boys, girls just fight over stupid things. I don't think so, of course, but I was wondering what a women's college is really like.</p>
<p>Are the girls like the "stereotypical girls"?</p>
<p>I think (someone please back me up on this) that most of the fights girls get into are about boys, directly or indirectly. I hate to say it, but certainly at my school there's a lot of *****iness between girls because they're competing over guys.</p>
<p>aw, im sorry. wellesley is my dream school. i think that i learn best in a quiet environment, & i think that generally girls are quieter than boys. i don't think i have a good chance b/c i don't have any extracirriculars. & im asian, there are a lot of asians at wellesley.</p>
<p>Where do you live? The best way to sell a parent on Wellesley is to GO to Wellesley with that parent, even better on one of those official days.</p>
<p>My mother accompanied me on tours to Harvard, Yale, MIT and Wesleyan, among other schools, and has stated that Wellesley was the only school whose tours/presentations made her say "wow."</p>
<p>I would say that other people's probing questions and stereotypes about single-sex environments were far more tiring than any issues actually living at Wellesley. A large portion of senior high school students write Wellesley off before giving it a chance which leaves you with people who want to go to Wellesley in spite of the all-women's atmosphere or even because of it. What is left is a school with a lot fewer catty girls that you might otherwise expect. The real question is whether an all-women's school encourages gender stereotypes of mutes them out. I've brought up the question twice and everyone seemed very disinterested in analyzing it properly (shame, 'cuz I think it's a good one).</p>
<p>I had similar frustrations with boys and immaturity in my own high school. All of that is gone at Wellesley and I was rather grateful. The bottom line is that the Wellesley I experienced has what you are looking for socially based on the situation you've described.</p>
<p>Have your parents check out the women's college coalition site! The</a> Women's College Coalition
There are lots of great points made about the merits of single-sex education.</p>
<p>WendyMouse: I live in California, so I have to fly to the east coast in order to see Wellesley. I live near Mills College in Oakland, CA, which is not, well, probably not Wellesley-caliber. It's also a women's college.</p>
<p>Hmmmm I really don't think you should go to Wellesley in order to escape guys, because in the real world there are men out there. However, if you are looking for that single-sex education, then go for it. :) Just keep in mind what you are really looking for so you don't set yourself up for disappointment or great expectations.</p>
<p>That being said, I would say that I hear of fights on campus between girls (somebody stole somebody's food from the fridge, whodunnit?!), but if I didn't then that would just mean that I am completely oblivious to human nature. I think the gals at Wellesley get along with each other even better than most girls from other schools, there's a certain comradery that draws you to each other. It's great! I think this is because most girls at Wellesley are intelligent enough to understand that it's a waste of time for everyone to be catty/passive aggressive.</p>
<p>You will never escape guys even at Wellesley. Sure there will not be guys in your classes but when there are events on campus they will be there. When girls bring there boyfriends and guy friends over, they will be there. So, do not go to wellesley thinking you will not have any contact with 'stupid boys.' The only people at Wellesley that did not really interact with guys never ever left the campus...which is sort of creepy! and they never really had that many female friends with other guy friends...so yea. I graduated from Wellesley a couple of years ago. I would know.</p>
<p>I went to Wellesley a long time ago, but it was a great experience for me. I had been a very good student in a very good public HS in the NY area; Wellesley was a blow to my ego in that I was not even remotely the smartest person there. But I had great professors, small classes (some as small as 5 students) and no opportunity to hide out and not participate. I did research with a great professor, took a wonderful variety of classes, and on the whole got a fantastic education. (I also met my husband, who went to MIT.) Oh, and I went to medical school a few years after I graduated. </p>
<p>One of the biggest strengths is the Wellesley alumnae community. Wherever I have lived, and we've moved alot, I have always found intelligent, caring and interesting women through the local Wellesley club. Networking can be very helpful in looking for jobs. </p>
<p>And there are so many famous alumnae: Hillary Clinton, Madeline Albright, Cokie Roberts, Pamela Melroy (astronaut), ...but I think that the best thing about it is that whatever Wellesley women do, they do it fully and passionately, whether they are investment bankers, physicians, scientists, farmers, mothers, or something else entirely.</p>
<p>well... not all guys are stupid... haha
anyway, at a college the caliber of wellesley, I think most people (girls or their guy friends) are pretty mature. sure, there'll be some catfights or guys that just need to grow up, but for the most part, I think this will be very different from what is expected at most high schools. you live on campus and in the same dorms with your classmates, so it's a lot more like a community. The big/little sister program epitomizes this.
also, I heard that a lot of wellesley girls go out with MIT/Harvard guys. they should be fairly tame even if they're brought on campus :P</p>
<p>At a women's college, based on listening to my D's experience, while there are some artifacts of "All Estrogen, 24/7," I think there actually tends to be a lot less interpersonal drama than at a co-ed school, largely due to the fact that guys aren't being used as pawns in social & power relationships.</p>
<p>Btw, Kiefer, regarding guys from MIT, there's a t-shirt that says about MIT guys, "The odds are good but the goods are odd."</p>
<p>I wouldn't oversell the MIT/Harvard connection. Can you do it? Yes. Does doing so impose a substantial time penalty and obstacles to scheduling your on campus classes? Yes.</p>
<p>if you're worried about transportation, it only takes about a 20 min ride to get to MIT. and you can also do the exchange program, which allows you to actually live on another college's campus for a semester/year.</p>
<p>justdeng,
The ride is more like 40 minutes, though longer depending on which stop you get off. The only time I've experienced a 25 minute ride was late at night.</p>